RTF Posted December 11, 2004 Report Share Posted December 11, 2004 OUTDOORS COLUMN BY RICK BROCKWAY At about 11 o’clock every night, I take Tucker — our big, yellow lab — out for his pre-bedtime stroll. It’s always interesting at that time of night. Shooting stars often streak across the heavens. A couple weeks ago, I actually caught a phenomenal show from the northern lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis. We often stand in the quiet darkness and listen to the coyotes, who howl and yelp to each other far up on the hill as they hunt for their nightly meals. Last weekend, my son was hunting deer in our back woods. There were scrapes and rubs left by a big deer where the pines meet the hardwoods, so he had hopes of seeing the mighty buck. Three does fed on browse and briars, but the large-antlered buck remained unseen. He went through the same spot in the woods the next day. Coyote tracks were everywhere. Clumps of hair and spots of blood piqued my son’s curiosity, so he followed the trail. It soon became obvious that the coyotes chased down one of the does. More evidence of the coyotes’ motives were soon evident. At the bottom of the hill near the brook, only the head and skeleton of a deer remained. The howls and barks we heard the previous night were probably the rejoicing sounds of another successful kill. After the canine pack fed on the deer, it obviously curled up and rested near the kill. Five or six beds surrounded the bony remains in the snowy woods. They had filled their stomachs in just one night. By morning, I’m sure they were on the move. With turkeys in nearby meadows and rabbits in the brush lots, the coyotes continued their never-ending hunt for food. After all, with the dawn comes a new day. How many deer will this pack kill and eat during the winter months ahead? If the snow is deep, hindering the deer’s ability to travel, the numbers will be quite high. The deer they killed the other night may have been wounded or injured. With only a couple of inches of snow, I’m not sure these animals could catch a deer as easily as the tracks indicated. Coyotes are creatures of opportunity and feed on the weak. Man is no longer that greatest predator in the woods. But there were no cougar tracks on our hill, either. Speaking of cougars I received an e-mail from Lt. Deming Lindsley, a 32-year veteran of the Department of Environmental Police. He said he’s heard of dozens and dozens of mountain lion "sightings" over the years in the Catskills. All of these reports came during the summer and fall months. Lindsley maintains that if cougars really existed here, there would be substantial evidence that they inhabited the area during the winter as well. After all, these large cats do not hibernate or migrate, but they certainly would hunt and kill big-game animals and livestock all winter long to survive. It’s also a fact that mountain lions do not take their prey up into trees. They bury it in the brush and return often until there’s nothing left to eat. Rumors of these great cats make for great fireside tales, but until actual proof is found and substantiated, we’ll just have to wonder. One thing’s for certain: Coyotes are real and there are a lot of them. Rick Brockway writes a weekly outdoors column for The Daily Star.Located in Central NY. You can E-mail him at [email protected]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckshot Posted December 11, 2004 Report Share Posted December 11, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer I believe coyotes are having a big impact on the deer herd. I was told of someone finding a coyote den and putting up trail cam and in time that mother coyote fed the pups 8 fawns! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer Coyotes here probably take a few fawns here and there. Sure they also find several of the wounded animals that hunters lose. Dont usually get enough snow here to slow a deer down enough for a coyote to catch a mature healthy deer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer When the winter blahs begin and boredom is running high, the cure can be so obvious. Get out there and hunt these critters. Actually, until more people do start hunting them, their numbers are just going to keep increasing. What natural enemies do they have besides cars and disease? I started last year (without any success) and will be out there in full force again this winter. There's a bit of a learning curve, but it is quite a challenge and sure is good for prying my butt off the couch. Go for it! Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VermontHunter Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer I have yet to see one here in Vermont this year, thankfully... but I'm sure they are there doing their thing. If one passes under my stand it's history I asure you of this. Vermont's Fish and Game Dept. did introduce some Timber Wolfs just north of me a few years back and are now being a nusience in that area. Don't ask me why they did this insane thing but I'm sure they regret it now. I was asked by my wifes uncle to go up and shoot a couple last year but found that they are being protected and it's illegal to hunt them. I can see this being a big problem in a few more years, this animal seems not to be easily imtimidated by anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turkeygirl Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer I know that coyotes and foxes are making a big impact on the turkey population here. I have found remains of turkeys in fields and at dens, not from hunters! We have a fox that takes our chickens! Let's just say I am shooting any fox or coyote that comes in my scope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer And yet, NYS protects these varmints with a season. In fact hunters who take coyotes must phone in a report for each one they get.....Pain-in-the-neck harassment! It doesn't sound like they want the coyote population cut. Probably because they help the DEC with its activity of herd decimation. Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbonhunter Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer I read in outdoor life that fawns make up almost 65%?? of a yotes diet, and that you can kill 75% of the yote population in a season and it will have no long term effects.....sounds like a pretty good preditor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer So what are people getting for a good prime coyote pelt these days? Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puffy Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer Coyotes around here are plentifull and pack up when the going gets tough. I hear them every time I go hunting, around sunset. You don't get much for them here either , but I let the air out of as many as I can when the opportunity arises. Open season here year around. It's not hard to find them, thet's for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted December 14, 2004 Report Share Posted December 14, 2004 Re: NY yotes on Deer $20 - $30 isn't bad. I used to skin foxes, mink, muskrats, possums, skunks, beaver and coons for a lot less when I was a a bit younger. And it didn't really take all that long either. Sounds worth doing to me. Might even be worth getting the traps out again. Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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